The HIBR is a prospective and retrospective observational repository. Designed as a core facility for Heart Institute investigators, it will grow into an institutional and eventually national resource. Located in dedicated research space within the Heart Institute, HIBR acquires, processes, organizes, and stores tissue and blood samples for current and future studies. Whole blood is used for DNA isolation, and the repository can perform limited wet-bench functions, including plasma isolation and B-lymphocyte transformation to generate immortalized cell lines and preserve genomic material. Samples may be collected at multiple time points, including during surgery, outpatient clinic visits, the perinatal period, and cardiac catheterizations, to capture comprehensive biological data across clinical encounters.
